ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan has directed the Interior Ministry and the Islamabad chief commissioner to submit pending records needed for local government delimitation in the federal capital within three days, as the long-delayed process again comes under pressure.
The required material includes certified maps of town corporations, details of census charges, circles and blocks, and other records needed to move ahead with delimitation for Islamabad’s local bodies. The ECP’s latest direction comes after repeated delays in receiving documents from the federal authorities.
The issue isn’t new. In March, the ECP had already taken up the delay in Islamabad’s local government polls and summoned Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, while also issuing a contempt notice to the interior secretary over non-compliance. At that hearing, the commission was told that letters seeking town corporation demarcation, union council details, maps and legal amendments had gone unanswered.
Islamabad’s local government elections have remained stuck for years, largely because of changes and disputes over union councils, town structures and delimitation requirements. A similar document-related delay was reported back in 2021, when the ECP sought records from the Interior Ministry to restart the halted delimitation process.
For now, the three-day deadline puts the ball back in the Interior Ministry’s court. If the required documents are submitted on time, the ECP can move toward finalising delimitation — a basic step before announcing a fresh schedule for local government elections in Islamabad.
